Une Jolie Fleur
by Aro the Purple Demon
Summary: Tsubaki Kalifia is a new student at Ouran Academy and has her sights on befriending the social ice cube, Kasanoda Ritsu. With a shop full of flowers and endless energy, can she do it?
1. Camellia Japonica

**Une Jolie Fleur**  
**(Beautiful Flower)**

**Chapter One**

* * *

**Camellia Japonica 'Rubescens Major'**

Ever since she was a little girl, Tsubaki Kalifia had a love for flowers. It may have been her name, _tsubaki_, the camellia flower, or her blood, having come from a long line of florists and gardeners. It really didn't matter. Gardening was something she loved and never wanted to give up. She worked in her family's shop, Des Fleurs d'Annette, which was French for Annette's Flowers. The shop had gone through many different titles and generations of the Tsubaki family, but the most recent change had been made almost twelve years ago, when Kalifia was four. Her mother had just passed away and the grief had been fresh, but Kalifia, with all the childlike innocence she had, wanted to use her mother's name so she would be remembered. So, the shop had been renamed after the French woman and after that, the shop had flourished, much like a well loved and tended garden. Kalifia considered it to be her greatest treasure.

So it was really no surprise that she was going through the back room, watering all the flowers in her free time when she could have gone to the amusement park with her friends. Most of her old friends from middle school had gotten together and thrown a party. Of course, Kalifia had been invited, but declined. Instead, she stayed home to help her father on one of those busy days. After all, someone had to take care of the flowers while he was distracted. But the day had begun to wind down and soon, Kalifia found herself standing in the front of the shop, a large bouquet of red and white roses in her arms, a bag of gardening supplies hanging from her shoulder.

"Are you sure you can handle it?" her father fussed, brown eyes wide. Kalifia grinned. Her father may have been getting old (she could see the streaks of silver setting in), and he may have raised two children before her and her younger brother, but he still acted like a teenager. Usually Grey, her oldest brother, would be around to make sure he didn't panic over every small detail, but he had decided to (been forced to) take a day off to spend with his wife, Lin.

"Yes, Papa." she smiled, nodding her head. "I'll be fine. It's only a trip down the street."

"Aa," he consented, but she could see the worry in his eyes. Her own olive ones softened.

"I know the place has a shady rep, but I can take care of myself." Her father frowned.

Tsubaki Daisuke knew better than anyone that she spoke the truth. Ever since she had begun to kick in her mother's stomach, he had known there was something different about the girl who stood before him. She had abnormal strength and had broken a few noses and wrists before she turned twelve, when she suddenly realized that people didn't really look for the aggressive type of person to associate themselves with. So, Kalifia had somewhat calmed down and taken up gardening as a full time hobby (when she wasn't at school that is), though she did have some outbursts.

"I'll be back in half an hour," she said, walking out the door. Daisuke watched his daughter's long, dark brown hair flutter around the corner. He sighed, feeling extremely old.

"My baby girl's growing up so fast," he practically sobbed, biting his handkerchief mournfully.

* * *

Kalifia had always lived in a medium sized house that was big enough for the average family. Of course, she did share a room with her older sister, like her younger brother, Jean, shared with Grey. Ever since the oldest two children of the Tsubaki family had gotten married, Kalifia and Jean had their own rooms. But no matter how nice their little Western styled house was, it was virtually nothing compared to this home. It had many different buildings and it was styled like the older houses of the Feudal Era.

Her olive eyes were wide as she shifted nervously in the lounge, eyes roaming over the beautiful paintings of flowers and more fierce ones of things like dragons and tigers on the prowl. The fierce pictures seemed to fit the men who lived here. The ones that were waiting outside the door. She shifted again.

Kalifia had never delivered anything to this house before. Grey had always made the trips, returning solemn. Well, more so than usual. Either way, the place made her feel nervous. Probably because it was the home of the fourth strongest yazuka syndicate in the Kanto region. The Tsubaki family had heard rumours that the young heir to the syndicate would attend Ouran Academy when school started back up. Daisuke had been nervous because Kalifia was supposed to start there as well, due to the shop's well going business and some help from her mother's family in France. They wanted to see Annette's youngest daughter, the one that was supposed to be frighteningly similar to her, to go to a proper school.

They might have been a bit stiff towards her older siblings and her father, but Kalifia and Jean were favoured, no doubt about that. It made them feel a bit uncomfortable discussing it, but Daisuke, Grey and Ichigo, her sister, had been more than encouraging.

So, her anxiety wasn't just caused by being in a possibly hostile home, it was also caused by the possibility of making a potential friend. She'd feel a lot better if she knew one person before heading off to some strange school for rich people.

"Oh, you're not Grey-san!" someone exclaimed quietly, making Kalifia jump. "Ah, sorry! I didn't mean to scare you."

A blond man smiled at her from the doorway, his long hair pulled back into a ponytail. Kalifia relaxed. She got the impression that he was a softy, despite being in a gang.

"No, I'm his younger sister." she bowed respectively. "My name is Tsubaki Kalifia." The blond bowed back.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Tsubaki-san. I am Sendou Tetsuya." She noticed that he seemed a bit ashamed of his surname and wondered what a Sendou was doing in a Kasanoda syndicate, but decided not to question it.

"Please, call me Kalifia, there's too many Tsubakis."

"That's what your brother said, Kalifia-san." he laughed quietly before nodding at the bag and roses in her arms. "Grey-san usually sticks around for a while and teaches the young lord how to take care of his garden, but you don't have to." Kalifia brightened considerably, much to Tetsuya's surprise.

"That's perfectly fine," she said cheerfully, then turned hesitant. "Not to be rude or anything, but is he going to attend Ouran Academy this year?" Tetsuya blinked.

"Um, he is." he said slowly, surveying her. Kalifia noticed and rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.

"I am too," she confessed, feeling comfortable talking with Tetsuya. She couldn't see why Grey always came back so serious.

"Really?" Tetsuya asked, his whole demeanor changing abruptly. He practically picked her up and carried her down the hall, shocking Kalifia and the men in the hall. Her shock turned to amusement as the once scary looking men with their many piercings stared with wide eyes and open mouths. "This is the young lord's room. Please be his friend and take care of him." Then Tetsuya was gone, running down the hall and rambling to the men, who looked at Kalifia in surprise. She waved back cautiously and was blown away by their enthusiastic response.

"PLEASE TAKE CARE OF HIM!"

A little dazed, Kalifia turned around and knocked on the door.

"Come in," a voice said. It was low pitched, obviously a male's. She cracked open the door cautiously. The speaker was a red head, crimson actually, about the same age as her with sharp features and light brown eyes. He was frowning at the uniform he held in front of him.

"Is that the boy's uniform for Ouran Academy?" she asked curiously, opening the door wider and stepping in. At least she knew what the boys would be wearing. Kalifia herself hadn't ordered a uniform, so she would stand out a bit.

"Ah!" the red head yelped, dropping the uniform on his futon and whirling around to face her. The girl had to stifle a giggle.

"Um, sorry." she said sheepishly, scratching her cheek. "I didn't mean to startle you, but you did tell me to come in."

"Who are you?" the red head asked, eyes widening at the fact that there was a stranger in his room. A stranger who was a girl, to be exact.

"Tsubaki Kalifia," the brunette said, bowing respectively. "My brother couldn't make it today, so I'm taking his place. It's a pleasure to meet you!" She beamed at him.

The red head, however, was in a whole different world.

_This could be my chance!_ he thought. _I can make a friend._

"Um, hellooooo?" Kalifia sang, waving her hand in front of his face. He jumped when he realized how close she was.

"Sorry," he apologized roughly, bowing back to her. "I'm Kasanoda Ritsu!" He attempted to smile at her, but it came out more of a grimace. Kalifia stared at him blankly and Ritsu felt his hopes fall.

Kalifia poked his cheek.

"Do you not know how to smile?" she demanded, grinning slightly. "It's pretty easy if you ask me. Unless you're a robot." Ritsu turned a light shade of pink, much to her amusement, and stepped away, causing her hand to drop back to her side.

"You're Grey-san's sister?" he asked, rubbing his face. His cheek tingled from where she touched it, like her finger had been full of electricity.

"The youngest," she shrugged. "So, you're going to Ouran? I am too."

"Really?" he asked, surprised.

"Yup," she nodded. "I'm a first year. I'll be in Class 1-D."

"That's my class too," he said awkwardly, avoiding her eyes.

"Guess that makes us buddies!" she said cheerfully, eyes closing as she smiled. Ritsu blinked in shock. Buddies?

"So,uh, do you like kick-the-can?" Kalifia made a slight face.

"It's not my favorite thing in the world, but I do like it. Though, I haven't played it for a while now." Ritsu looked a bit disappointed. Kalifia noticed and decided to change the subject. "Do you like gardening? You ordered a lot of supplies." He met her eyes this time, a real smile on his lips, albeit a small one.

"Yeah," he said quietly. Kalifia grinned again.

"Well then, let's get started!"

* * *

About an hour later, Kalifia stood outside the gates to the syndicate. Her cheeks and faded jeans were smudged with dirt, as were Ritsu's, but each were content. Kalifia had spent some time going over the care of the roses, including what kind of soil they needed, the proper amount of sunlight and water they should get, and where they would grow best before the two had begun to plant the seeds and seedlings from the bag.

Ritsu learned that the girl had no problems with getting down in the dirt to work, unlike the girls he had gone to middle school with. In turn, Kalifia learned that Ritsu, despite his rough exterior, was exceedingly gentle and attentive in his work. Afterwards, Kalifia had taken the opportunity to explore the small garden, admiring the work and beauty of the flowers. Ritsu had just stood to the side and watched.

"So, see you at school then, Kasanoda-san!" Kalifia said, waving over her shoulder at him as she walked down the street to her house.

"Aa, er, do you wanna walk together?" he asked, then added on hastily. "Just for the first day, I mean!" Kalifia stared at him for a moment, olive eyes unreadable.

"I'd like that, " she said finally, lips twisting up into a crooked smile. Then she walked around the corner and put of sight. Ritsu stared after her for a moment longer then headed inside.

Once both teens were out of sight from the other, they crowed happily.

"I MADE A FRIEND!"

* * *

**Random Facts:**

About title: _Camellia Japonica 'Rubescens Major'_ - This very old form of the Japanese camellia produces double crimson-red flowers with darker veins. It forms a compact bush with glossy, rounded, dark green leaves. There are several other good camellias with red flowers, such as the semidouble "Paul's Apollo' and 'R. L. Wheeler'.


	2. Wisteria Sinensis

**Une Jolie Fleur**

**(Beautiful Flower)**

**Chapter Two**

* * *

**Wisteria Sinensis**

A few days after the meeting between Kalifia and Ritsu, the young red headed man found himself standing outside Des Fleurs d'Annette in his new uniform.

"Can I help you?" a pretty woman asked, obviously a few years older than him. She seemed slightly familiar to him. She rather soft looking, a healthy sort of plump, with long black hair and wide brown eyes. She had a rather motherly smile, emphasized by the toddler on her hip.

"Aa," Ritsu said, avoiding her eyes. For some reason, they made him feel unreasonably guilty. "I'm looking for Tsubaki Kalifia. We're supposed to walk to school together." The woman smile at him and he realized that she looked like a more gentle version of Kalifia.

"I'm afraid my sister isn't up yet," she seemed slightly annoyed with her sister, then she beamed at him, the resemblance to Kalifia obvious now. "If you'd be so kind as to hold my son for a little while, I'll go get her for you." Ritsu was bewildered as the toddler was deposited in his arms. Ichigo Shikari grinned at her son and sister's friend before going upstairs.

The Tsubaki family house and Des Fleurs d'Annette were built very close together and had a little bridge-like structure connecting the upper floor of the shop to the attic of the house, were Kalifia kept her little pet projects. A half-finished painting sat in one corner, a chest of dresses in another. Sheet music littered and several crude drawings of animals lay around the floor. Ichigo stopped briefly to scoop them up and put them on an old oak desk before heading out of the attic and downstairs, where her youngest brother, Jean, was trying to make his hair lay down flat.

"Ichi-nee!" he cried, the fifteen year old spinning around to beam at her, the way most of the Tsubaki family seemed to.

"You do realize you're trying the hopeless, right?" she asked wryly, running a hand through his messy, dark brown hair. Jean just laughed, sitting down at the table. "Where's Kal?" Jean seemed to sparkle as he started to babble about his older sister.

"Nee-sama's still in bed! I tried to tell her it was morning and that she should get ready but then she picked me up and threw me down the hall! Isn't she awesome? She's so strong and -" Ichigo tuned her brother out as she headed down the hall, an act she had perfected for almost fourteen years.

Quietly, she pushed open the green door to Kalifia's room, stepping inside. She shook her head at her sister's messy room. Papers and clothes were scattered on the floor, the pale green rug rolled up into the corner. She had various posters plastered to the light green walls, anime characters and French rock stars were pinned up at random. Her light oak desk was covered with unframed and framed pictures of friends and her family.

The bed contained a sleeping Kalifia, dark hair splayed out over her back and face down in the pillow, muffled snores coming from her. Ichigo walked over to the curtains and threw them open, allowing the light to flood the room. She shook Kal gently, whispering softly.

"Kal. Kal, get up. There's someone waiting to walk to school with you!" she raised her voice on the last part as her sister stirred. Kal pushed herself up slightly, turning her head towards her older sister, eyes shadowed.

"Go. Away." she growled, radiating killing intent.

"Silly," Ichigo replied, thumping her forehead. "You don't want to miss your first day of school, do you? Now, there's a young man waiting for you so I suggest you get ready."

She then rose from the bed and walked back into the kitchen, where she found Ritsu sitting awkwardly at the kitchen table, listening to Jean ramble. Daisuke had found him standing in front of the shop, Ichigo's son, Erik, pulling on his hair curiously. He then proceeded to drag him inside and try to force him to eat breakfast with them. Ichigo giggled as he ducked when Jean's fork flew through the air, and picked Erik up, adjusting him on her hip.

"Is Nee-sama ready yet?" Jean asked, slightly impatient.

"She should be." A few seconds after she finished, Kalifia stalked into the kitchen, bag slung over her shoulder and a disgruntled glare on her face.

"Move it. School. Walking. Now." she growled, grabbing a piece of toast and stalking out the front door. Ichigo just smiled pleasantly at the red head, who was confused with Kalifia's sudden personality change.

"I'm afraid she's like this in the mornings!" she said cheerfully, spooning some rice into Erik's open mouth. "AB blood type you know!"

"Aa?"

"Let's go Kasa-senpai!" Jean cheered, grabbing Ritsu and dragging him out the door with surprising strength.

_Strange family._ he thought, sweat dropping.

* * *

"The middle school is huge." Kalifia stated flatly, eyes wide as she stared up at it.

"Aa," Ritsu said. Kal frowned.

"Is that all you can say?" she pouted, wanting an actual conversation.

"Hn," Ritsu had to bite his cheek to keep from grinning as Kal threw her hands in the air and stalked off. Her bad mood had faded away and she was the expressive girl he had met days ago.

"How far is the high school from here, Kasanoda-san?" she asked her companion, taking off her dark sunglasses and putting them in her jacket pocket before taking it off as well. She folded the black and white clothing over her arms and traced the butterfly design boredly. The back of her black tank top lifted up slightly, revealing the smooth skin on her back just above the checkered belt she wore with her grey jeans, which almost covered her converse. She tucked a hand adorned with a fingerless white glove in her pocket, and looked over at him curiously.

"I think that's the clock tower," Ritsu pointed at the said object, which was just around the corner.

"Is it. . . _pink_?" Kalifia asked incredulously, stopping in surprise.

"Aa," Ritsu said. He wasn't surprised. He had gone with his father a few weeks ago to get his schedule and look around a bit before school started. At first, the whole pink color scheme confused and secretly frightened him a bit, but he brushed it off. He was going to be a leader some day and leaders couldn't afford surprises.

Ichigo had gone in place of Daisuke, who had taken Kalifia and Jean into the mountains to spend sometime with their grandparents, Tsubaki Anko and Taichi. Daisuke's oldest daughter thought it would be a good chance for her to meet the Headmaster when her sister went to get her schedule and only gave her the name of her designated class.

"Which way's the office?" she asked, head tipped all the way back to stare at the ceiling. The chandelier directly above her sparkled in the light, making her drool slightly. Mornings had a certain effect on Kalifia's mentality. Not in a very positive way though.

"Go down that hall all the way to the end." Ritsu instructed her, gently pushing her forward and tearing her gaze away from the 'sparklies'. "I'm gonna head to the classroom." Kalifia nodded and grinned at him before walking down the directed path.

"Catch you in a bit, Kasanoda-san!" she called, slipping her sunglasses back on and throwing her jacket over her shoulder. Several boys stared after her, eyes on her chest and face while the girls whispered their opinions about her. There was an even diversion of her being a scantily dressed delinquent and her being 'kind of cool looking'. Kalifia smirked, her ego boosted.

Ritsu shook his head, wondering just how her mind and emotions worked. One minute she was irritable the next overwhelmed and dazed and now, she was all smug and confident. He had chosen a very strange friend to make.

* * *

The secretary observed Kalifia with wary eyes, handing her her schedule cautiously, making sure not to touch her. To be honest, the students of the -D classes terrified her and no matter how sweetly the girl in front of her smiled, she wouldn't let her guard down for a moment.

"Thank you!" the brunette said cheerfully, smiling as she took the paper and bowed good-bye. As she walked out the door something slammed into her. The secretary watched nervously as the 'something', who was a teen about two or three inches shorter than Kalifia, fell to the floor. The taller girl staggered a bit then blinked down at the person.

It was a boyish looking girl with boy-short brown hair and caramel colored eyes behind large, thick-rimmed glasses. She wore an extremely bulky sweater over a white button up shirt and black pants. Kalifia might have mistaken her for a boy from a distance.

"I'm sorry," the girl apologized. "I should have been paying attention."

"It's not a problem." Kalifia said cheerfully, pushing her glasses back over her head and offering the fallen girl her hand. She took it gratefully, smiling slightly.

"I'm Fujioka Haruhi. I apologize for walking into you like that." Haruhi bowed slightly and Kalifia returned the gesture.

"Tsubaki Kalifia. It's nice to meet you, Fujioka-san. You're not hurt are you?" she added in concern, peering at her with slight curiosity.

"I'm fine." Haruhi insisted. Kalifia grinned and walked past her, waving over her shoulder.

"That's good. See you later, Fujioka-san!"

Kalifia was lucky that she was a first year. Her class was on the ground floor so she wouldn't get lost on the upper floors and staircases.

"Let's see," she murmured, looking over the signs outside the classrooms. "1-D. 1-D. 1-Ah! There it is!" She walked over to the door and opened it, taking a deep breath before stepping inside.

* * *

**Review Corner**:

No reviews, but thanks to _makoko_ and _BR BlackRose_ for Story Alerting.

* * *

**Random Facts**:

About Title: _Wisteria Sinensis _- Chinese wisteria is a stunning climber suitable for growing against a wall, up a large tree, or over a pegola. The brilliant lilac-blue, fragrant, pealike flowers are produced in long, pendant clusters during the late spring and early summer. It is a vigorous plant, but it can be restricted by careful pruning in summer after flowering, as well as in winter.

About Kalifia: Kal's 5'5", three inches taller than Haruhi. She also shares the Zodiac sign, Aquarius, with her along with the birth month of February. She's a year older than her and her birthday's February 2nd. If you haven't noticed, she's prone to extreme mood swings, a bit like Tamaki and Hani. She's a bit scatterbrained.


	3. AN

This story has been discontinued for the time being due to a major edit of all our stories and a general rewriting of all of our stuff.


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